LET’S ACT! slate opens candidate applications to all students
By Catherine Liberty Feliciano
Jan. 26, 2015 2:48 a.m.
The LET’S ACT! slate opened its candidate application process Sunday to all students interested in running for undergraduate student government positions.
The change comes less than a week after the Bruins United slate opened its candidate application process to all students for the first time.
Students will be able to apply to run with LET’S ACT! for any of the 14 Undergraduate Student Association Council positions. LET’S ACT!, a coalition of student groups that first ran candidates in 2013, has not yet decided which positions it will be running candidates for and will determine its slate composition based on the applicants it receives, said Conrad Contreras, USAC external vice president and a member of the LET’S ACT! slate.
Slates are composed of groups of candidates running on similar platforms with shared resources.
LET’S ACT! members have been talking about opening the application process to the student body since the summer, Contreras said. He said they were inspired by Cal Students for Equal Rights and a Valid Education, their sister coalition at UC Berkeley, which has always had an open application process.
Contreras said LET’S ACT! aims to be an inclusive coalition of progressive students, and potential candidates should be committed to creating change for social justice, racial justice and the advancement of historically marginalized communities on campus and in society.
“We expect candidates to have a strong understanding of power, oppression, privilege and have a strong commitment to social justice,” Contreras said.
LET’S ACT! will be reviewing applicants holistically and considering them for all positions, regardless of their preferred positions, he said.
Applications are available to students on the LET’S ACT! Facebook page until Feb. 4 at 6 p.m.
Compiled by Catherine Liberty Feliciano, Bruin contributor.
